Focus on transatlantic cooperation and an eye on the future: The German-American Business Day was held for the 8th time on June 15.
Frankfurt/Atlanta, June 16, 2023 - More than 250 companies interested in the U.S. market as well as representatives from politics and business met on June 15 at the premises of the Frankfurt am Main Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IHK Frankfurt am Main) for the 8th German-American Business Day to discuss important issues of German-American economic cooperation.
The main focus was on market entry strategies and regulatory frameworks with regard to current U.S. industrial policy. However, new work concepts, legal specifics, automation trends as well as opportunities and risks in digital sales and marketing were also examined in workshops from a practical bilateral perspective.
Prominent speakers such as Norman Thatcher Scharpf, U.S. Consul General in Frankfurt am Main, and representatives of foreign trade promotion and leading business associations kicked off the event by laying the macroeconomic and geostrategic foundation for the ensuing discussion among German companies on the current economic and investment environment.
The event was preceded by a moderated presentation by STIHL AG CEO Michael Traub, who addressed the company's establishment in the U.S. and then shared with participants his extensive U.S. experience on various key issues.
"Made in Germany" remains an important point, said Jan Heck, President & CEO of Miele USA, and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the German American Chamber of Commerce. In recent years, however, one could observe an increasing tendency to return to local value creation - "local for local"; "German Engineering: Yes, but 'Made in the USA'".
German-American relations have never been stronger and more important. As of 2022, German investment in the US amounts to roughly $637 billion, with over 5,600 German companies present in the US, and 885,100 jobs created by German companies in the US.
Finally, U.S. state representatives from Alabama to Wisconsin presented characteristics and unique selling points of their respective states in lively short presentations and invited further discussions with the conference participants during the numerous networking breaks.
On the eve of the conference, organizers, speakers and sponsors met for an exclusive reception at Deutsche Bank Park, where the transatlantic ties were impressively underlined by the cooperation between Eintracht Frankfurt and the Carolina Panthers NFL team.
Thanks to the cooperation with the Frankfurt Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Hessian economic development agencies in the Rhine-Main region, Frankfurt was once again chosen as the venue for the 8th German-American Business Day after 2016. This venue makes the close ties between the two countries visible on a daily basis: more than 1,200 American companies have a branch office in the region, including many headquarters of the top-selling American companies.
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With offices in Atlanta, Chicago, New York, San Francisco and Washington, D.C., the German American Chambers of Commerce (GACC) is a network of nonprofit organizations dedicated to promoting business and economic relations between Germany and the United States. Our mission is to promote the German-American business relations and to encourage trade and investment between Germany and the United States. Our organization combines elements of a trade commission, membership association, and professional consulting services for market entry, U.S. education, and more.